


HYDRA (Mk. 2)

by iloveitblue



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: A reworking of S01E17 to E22 of AoS, Giveaway fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-06
Updated: 2014-08-06
Packaged: 2018-02-12 02:38:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,146
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2092485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iloveitblue/pseuds/iloveitblue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The one where Clint is HYDRA (Mk. 2)</p>
            </blockquote>





	HYDRA (Mk. 2)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [missingisntanoption](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=missingisntanoption).
  * Inspired by [HYDRA](https://archiveofourown.org/works/1817923) by [iloveitblue](https://archiveofourown.org/users/iloveitblue/pseuds/iloveitblue). 



> This is the fic I made for the winner of my mini giveaway:[missingisntanoption](http://missingisntanoption.tumblr.com/)
> 
> She wanted a longer Clint is HYDRA fic. Sooooo.... here we are.

 

HYDRA was a threat from the 1940's. That's World War 2. It's been years and HYDRA was assumed dead when their leader, The Red Skull, was blown to pieces just before Captain America drove the dangerous bomb-carrying-plane down into the ice.

Obviously not.

Phil stared at the words as they formed,

**Out of the shadows, Into the light.**

**HYDRA**

SHIELD must be in chaos. Hell, the Bus was in panic, no matter how calm everyone looked.

“Cut off a head, Two more will take its place.” Phil muttered, remembering HYDRA’s chants.

“Was it a head? I thought it was a limb.” Garrett asked, because that seemed like an appropriate subject to discuss now.

“It’s a head.” Coulson said in finality.

“But it was sent from a SHIELD source. It’s gotta be some sort of activation signal for HYDRA agents within SHIELD.” Skye explained.

“Hand must be one of them.” Phil concluded.

\---

Hand wasn’t one of them.

But Garrett sure as hell was. A battle for SHIELD’s soul his ass. The lying bastard was a good actor. He made a little slip that finally made all of the pieces fit together. Phil felt so stupid about not figuring it out until now.

“For HYDRA?” Phil asked him. “You really believe all that crap? Spreading death and destruction”

Garrett pinched his eyebrows as he stared at the floor. “I wouldn’t say I’m a true believer. Let’s just say I felt the wind changing direction and swung my sail.” He shrugged, as he gave Phil a smirk. “You really should too.” He offered.

“I would die before serving HYDRA, you sick son of a bitch.” Phil spat.

“I hate to tell you, but…” Garrett looked smug “You’ve been serving HYDRA all along. I guess death is the only alternative. It’s a sad thing, I consider you a friend. I was happy to hear you’ve made it through.”

“So happy that you had me tortured for three days just to find out how they did it.”

Garrett dropped his hands to his sides. “I didn’t enjoy that. Ph-Phil, this is me being honest.” He gestured to himself.

“No John, This is you, being a psychopath.”

Garrett snorted, as he shook his head. “Besides Phil. I wasn’t the only one who was happy to see you alive. There were some people who would give their very freedom just to see you.” Garrett smiled cryptically.

\---

_“Barton. Get down from there.” Phil says exasperated. He hates dealing with Barton. He was like a giant 10 year old with sugar rush._

_“With all due respect sir, there’s nothing in the SHIELD rules that prohibits me from staying up here.” Barton retaliates, his voice echoing through the vents._

_“No. There isn’t. But there is one that prohibits you from terrorizing other agents that walk by this hall like goddamn troll under a bridge.” Phil kneads the bridge of his nose._

_“Honestly sir, If they get terrorized by a little jump scare, then I don’t think they’re ready to be a SHIELD agent.” Barton says, which actually makes sense, but that doesn’t mean its right._

_Coulson negotiates with him and allows him further access to the vents so long as he didn’t terrorize any more agents._

_That was when Clint Barton started stalking Agent Phil Coulson instead._

_+++_

_“Happy Birthday, Sir!” Clint bursts into Coulson’s office carrying a plate of Little Debbie’s mini frosted donuts arranged around a regular donut with a cupcake in the middle and a candle._

_“Barton, that’s a fire-hazard.” Phil points out._

_“Aww, Come on! I baked you a bunch of donuts for your birthday and you tell me off for a candle?” Barton complains as he puts the plate on Coulson’s desk. Coulson blows out the candle and stares at it for a minute then up at Barton with a raised brow._

_“You baked this?” Clint grins and nods happily. “Should I call Medical before I eat it?”_

_Clint’s grin fell off and was replaced with a scowl. “Fine, be that way! I’ll take my masterpiece elsewhere!” He moves to grab the plate but Coulson swats his hands away._

_“You already gave it to me. It’s mine now.” Phil says, popping one of the mini donuts into his mouth._

_Clint rolls his eyes at him “And you said I was the 10 year old.”_

_“You are.” Phil concedes. “And you didn’t bake these, you liar.”_

_Clint just shrugs and grins at him._

\---

Every TV station was reporting the fall of the Triskelion and Captain America and the Black Widow outing every single one of SHIELD’s secrets.

“Captain America has defeated the Helicarriers at the Triskellion.” Hand turns to Phil just as Phil looks up to meet Hand’s eyes. “But his status is unknown.”

“And SHIELD has fallen.” Phil finishes for her.

Phil doesn't ask her about Natasha. He doesn’t ask about Clint. If he’s being honest he’s afraid to.

“HYDRA factions has taken control of our east African headquarters and the Treehouse. And those are just the ones we know of.” Hand reports.

“There’s gonna be a scramble. A power grab.”

“I’ll head to the Fridge. At least that facility is secure.”

“I don’t need to remind you how imperative it is that it stay that way.”

“And I’ll find Agent Garrett the smallest, darkest cell in the Ice Box.”

“I’d like to turn the key on that cell myself.” Ward says from behind them. “If you don’t mind, sir.” Grant Ward was as broken as they all were. It must have hurt to have someone you completely trusted to turn on you. They both turn to him, listens to what he has to say. “He was my SO. I feel like..” He shakes his head in disappointment, towards Garrett and himself. “I should’ve known. It’s my duty to-”

“No one knew. I didn’t know. That’s how he beat us… By being a friend.” And suddenly, because of his own words, Phil felt even more afraid to find out what had happened to Strike Team Delta.

“I spent years with that bastard.” He shakes his head, disgust showing. “Looked up to him. I want to see him suffer.” Anger now. Hand nodded, she understood.

“Don’t mind the company. And I could always use a man with your skills.” She turns to Coulson. “Pick up the pieces of the Hub, if you can. And only communicate with one of these.” She hands him a phone. “You and I may be the highest ranking SHIELD agents who aren’t HYDRA or dead. Not that that means anything now. All we have is each other. So stay in touch, Agent Coulson.” She holds out her hand and Phil gladly takes it.

“I guess you can call me Phil.” Hands snorts, gives him a tight smile and a nod before moving along.

\---

Phil’s team looks like they were defeated when he climbs back down from his room. Of course they were. Phil was feeling ten times worse not knowing who he could turn to. Who he could trust. He can’t let that show though. So he fixes his dress shirt and moves on, pretends it doesn’t bother him that he can’t find his friends.

“Skye, try to resource some of the firmware on the plane’s systems. FitzSimmons, get a crew together.” They turn to each other then back to Coulson. “Help May patch the holes.” They all move, when Coulson turns his back on them.

“You still want me on board.” May comments.

“You’re not a friend… But I do believe you’re an ally. We need all the allies we can get.” May looks hurt by his words. Phil doesn’t care. He’d never once lied to May, he thought she’d at least extend the same courtesy.

“What are we planning to do next?” May asks him.

“Survive.” He says without looking back.

\---

_Phil doesn’t know when it started. When he started looking at Barton the way he did now._

_Barton had always managed to catch his attention, but wasn’t that normal? He was very hard to ignore. Whenever they were on the field, Clint was this totally unflappable being that did his job perfectly and made it look effortless. Although there are a few complaints on the ‘He doesn’t understand what radio silence means’ department, he made it up by getting the job done and Phil likes him for that._

_Then there’s the Clint Barton who was not on the field. He is an overgrown child (and Phil will forever use that to describe Clint) who’s just been set loose in the toy store. He finds joy in everything. He terrorizes the junior agents (which Phil may or may not have given him the go ahead for) and he’s pranked almost everybody in HQ; including Fury. He had a childlike glee that Coulson was envious of and found adorable._

_Then there’s the Clint that always seemed to seek him out. The Clint that refused to go to medical unless Phil was with him. The Clint that always brought Phil lunch or coffee without being asked._

_Phil is in love with all of them._

_But Phil has promised eternal silence to himself. He’d never want anyone to find out this secret. Especially not Clint. Not when he knows how fruitless his pining was, how ridiculous it was to be in love with someone so out of his league it was literally laughable, how the stakes included not only Clint’s friendship but also his trust. So yeah, No. He isn’t saying anything._

_That’s why color him surprised when Clint kissed him post mission one day while Phil was bearing his soul about Audrey leaving him._

_It was unexpected but not unwelcomed. Clint pulled back and Phil chased after his lips, locking them again. The kiss turning hard and heavy all too quickly. Breaking apart was probably the hardest act Phil had to do in his life, because apparently, his lungs couldn’t just be happy for him and was demanding oxygen._

_Clint had whispered sweet nothings to him and promised to love him like no one ever did; like he deserved, if he just gave Clint the chance. Phil wanted to laugh. Give Clint a chance? He’s already won before the draw started._

\---

A female agent reports to him as he was watching the different news being reported regarding SHIELD. “Sir?”

“Find Agent Martin. We need a back channel to the UN. Someone we trust.” He tells her, and she dismisses herself. Skye walks up to him, a tablet in hand.

“I made a list of SHIELD bases we believe are secure.”

“How many so far? Seven?” He asks.

Skye looks up from her tablet “Three.” Coulson meets her gaze, surprised.

“Plus the Hub.” He confirms with a nod.

“Including the Hub.” She tells him. “It’s a preliminary list. I’m sure more will turn up”

“What about the-”

“I’ve searched indexes and databases on every known SHIELD drives, there was nothing regarding an Agent Barton.”

“Dig deeper. Look for paper trails, transaction records, flight reports. Anything you can get your hands on.” Phil tells her.

Skye wants to ask what was so important about this one Agent when all of SHIELD was in chaos. She wants to tell him how hard it was to find something when SHIELD wasn’t in ruins, how much more now that it was nothing but gravel. She doesn’t though, because Phil was wearing his heart on his sleeve right now and that tells Skye that whoever Barton was, he’s important to Phil. Instead she comments on the news.

“You were right all along.” Coulson turns to her. “Having all this out in the world is dangerous, and now… There’s no one left to protect it.”

“There’s us.” Coulson says. “We were lucky enough to make it through. The Triskellion, the Hub. Those battles are just the beginning of this war. HYDRA’s out there now, but at least our team is still intact. We can fight them… and we will.” Coulson leaves her to her devices.

\---

The conversation with Colonel Talbot did not sound good. Nobody trusted SHIELD anymore, and why would they, when HYDRA was within them all along.

“If Tabolt’s leading the op, there’s nothing peacekeeping about it.” Coulson tells them, walking out of the Operations room, Skye and Melinda following him.

“Base defenses are operational. We could hold out.” May suggests.

“Last thing SHIELD needs is to start a war with the US government.”

“What happens when Tabolt gets here?” Skye asks

“Best case scenario, We get to spend the next six months tied up in court hearings.” Phil answers.

“Worst case?”

“They move straight to bunker busters.”

“Bombs. Big Bombs.”

“All the while, HYDRA’s still out there.” May adds.

“Check in on the comms. We’re acting out Odyssey protocol.” Coulson tells Skye.

“Odyssey protocol? what does that mean?”

“It means Fitz needs to finish those repairs. We’re getting the hell out of here.”

“There’s one more thing. I’ve got good news.” Skye tells him, pulling Coulson aside and letting May move to the Bus first. “I found him. Agent Barton.”

Coulson’s eyes widen immediately and fills with what Skye can only say was hope. “Where?”

“He was in the Cube when everything went spiraling out of control. Last I checked, he was the one who led SHIELD against the HYDRA uprising.” Skye reports and she doesn’t miss the way Coulson’s lips play at a smile.

“Get him on the Bus as soon as you can.”

“Already did.” Skye grins at him. “ETA is 20 minutes.”

Coulson smiles at her and he just looks so happy, Skye smiled back at him. “Thank you.”

“Any time you need me, AC.” She says and follows Coulson into the Bus.

\---

_Phil’s death was hard on all of the Avengers but Clint most of all. Bruce Banner and Steve Rogers barely knew the man. Thor had an exchange with him back at New Mexico. Tony Stark was under his supervision for quite a while too. But it was Natasha and Clint who had spent the most time with him and therefore the closest to him._

_Natasha had known even before the battle but Clint didn’t. Nobody told him about it. Nobody told him that the man he loves died ‘still believing in Heroes’. What total load of bullshit._

_Clint wanted to scream. He wanted to stab Loki exactly like he stabbed Phil. He wanted to hurt someone. He needed to punch something. He needed to let off some steam._

_So he did what he always did._

_He went to the range. He shot dummies and targets for hours with bullets and arrows alike. He practiced trick shots and didn’t stop until his hands refused to cooperate anymore. He blames the muscle tension._

_He tries not to think about how Phil used to just sit and stay behind him, watching shoot when he had bad days. He tries not to think about Phil’s gentle arms as they wrap around him after Clint’s hands shook like this. He tries not to think about the voice that always calmed the demons in him._

_He fails._

_So instead he goes back to shooting stuff. He focuses on his work and tries not to pass by the hall that Coulson’s office was located. It’ll heal sooner or later. He’ll get over Phil sooner or later. He’ll forget about him sooner or later. He has to._

_But he also doesn’t want to._

_He can’t forget Phil. He can’t forget the man he loves just like that. He tries to be the robot they all want him to be, following orders, keeping radio silence, whatever they need him to do; but there’s still that part of him that wishes for Phil. He can’t forget. He won’t._

\---

“A lot of agents are staying behind to surrender.” May reports.

“Ask them to reconsider. We’ll need all the help we can get to fight HYDRA. How’s the bus?”

“Fitz managed to rig the ramps but the fuel reserves were tapped out. We’re running low.”

“Tabolt’s landing in less than an hour, Can you get us up in the air or not?”

“How bout wheels up in 10?”

“Make it 15… We’re waiting for someone.” Phil says.

May looks at him quizzically, like she wants to ask who; but she doesn’t. Phil is thankful, but he’s not even sure if Clint will make it. She heads to the cockpit and Coulson was headed to the main floor when Tripp stops him.

“So you guys all set to go.” The man says.

“I appreciate your help.” Phil replies.

“Enough to give me a bunk? Seeing as how you guys are down a specialist, I was hoping I could hitch a ride.”

“Not gonna happen. But feel free to commandeer one of Hand’s vehicles.” Phil shoots him down.

“I’m sorry. Is there a problem?” Tripp asks just before Phil made it up the first step.

“No problem. Just not letting you on my plane.” Phil says with a shrug.

“Besides, They do have a specialist.” A voice said, followed by the familiar steps of a certain archer. They all turn to the blonde man wearing a tac vest with a duffel bag. “My new best friend, Skye, tells me I should report here in about 10 minutes or so, or else she’s gonna be chewed out by her boss.” He drops his duffel and makes a beeline for Phil. He stops in front of him and smiles. “We wouldn’t want that.”

Phil smiles back at him. “Of course not.”

“Hi.” Clint says, almost a whisper.

“Hey.”

They all get on board as the Bus starts to lift off and somehow, Simmons has convinced Phil to let Tripp come with them. Phil agreed on the grounds that Tripp was her responsibility.

\---

“What now, boss?” Clint asks him, as he too drops his badge unto Phil’s table right after Skye goes out.

“I don’t know.” Phil says honestly. It felt nice being honest to Clint. He always got this smile on his face that seemed to light up his entire being.

“Phil, we can’t just fly around and try to dodge our problems.” Clint reminds him.

“I know that but right now, we have nowhere to turn to. No one to ask for help. If I just-”

“Uh- Phil. Is that your badge?” Clint points at a soft glow on top of the stack and Phil scrambles for it. There were numbers on his badge, glowing, orange numbers. Phil was sure they weren’t there before.

“They look like…” Clint starts

“Coordinates. Fury must’ve put them here.” He stands and moves in front of Clint.

“Phil, I’m not so sure-” Clint takes the badge from him and stares at the coordinates.

“This is just like Fury’s style.” Phil gestures wildly.

“It could be a trap. You don’t know that it really is from Fury. For all you know, HYDRA could have sent you those coordinates.” Clint scowls at the numbers and then at Phil, who was so convinced that these were from a dead associate.

“No. Don’t you see? It’s Fury’s handiwork. I’m sure he was the one who sent this. There must be something waiting for us at these coordinates.” Phil taps at the badge

“Fury’s dead, Phil!” Clint grabs Phil. “He’s dead. He’s gone.”

Phil shakes his head. “He’s not, and you know it.”

“Tasha texted me the day they found out Fury was dead. She saw the body, Phil. Fury’s dead.” Clint shakes his head, “I’m sorry Phil.”

Phil doesn’t say anything and he moves to sit back in his chair and stare at the badge. There was a long moment filled only by silence.

“What are you planning to do?” Clint asks again.

“We’ll follow the coordinates, trap or not. It’s the only lead we have.” Phil says. There was nothing left to do, after all.

“If it’s a trap?” Clint asks because they both knew that with the current situation, there was a big possibility that this was a trap.

“We fight.” Phil says, looking up at Clint.

Clint smiles at him. “Just like old times, then. Running straight into the firefight, coming out alive.”

“Having each other’s back...” Phil remembers and Clint grins.

“Always.”

\---

_The thing was, Clint knows that Coulson is alive. Of course, Coulson is alive. It was impossible for Coulson to be dead. Some people think that Clint was just in denial, but he’s not. He should know Coulson better than anyone and a stab wound is clearly something he’d just walk away from, right? Right._

_Besides, Fury is a lying liar who lies. Of course he is. He’s always been a liar. Nothing has changed and Fury was still the same lying bastard who kept the details of Phil’s survival to himself. Clint wants to fillet him alive and use his skin as a flag. Too graphic? Fury deserves it for lying to all of them and choosing to keep the fact that Phil is alive all to himself. That liar._

_One day, while he was snooping around the vents, he found a path he never took before. He went down it curious as to where the path lead and then he found it. The lone filing cabinet in a room so big. It wasn’t unusual to find filing cabinets inside SHIELD but this was the first one Clint saw that was alone and based on the vents, it was far from the eyes of many._

_So Clint decided to investigate. While investigating and rifling through the folders, there were a lot of them (Project TORCH, Project 32, Project INSIGHT) he found the files about Project TAHITI. These were secrets that nobody else had access to but Fury himself and some select few._

_Coulson was alive. Project TAHITI was sure of it, if any of the recently taken photos were to be believed. So Clint set out on a mission himself. He’d find Coulson._

_Turns out, he didn’t need to. The following week, they were reintroduced to Phil Coulson himself, Fury talked about keeping this a secret from the other Avengers and that it was a matter of giving the Avengers a common variable. Phil was the key to jump start the Avengers Initiative and it had worked._

_Clint didn’t listen. Instead, he just got up from his seat and hugged Coulson. He didn’t care what anybody else thought about him. He hugged Coulson and muttered a small “Welcome Back, Sir.” before Coulson returned the hug just as tightly. It’s nice to have Phil back._

\---

“Enter the eerie cave that tried to shoot us, sure. Why not?” Clint mutters beside Coulson as they enter the compound hidden behind the rocks. Coulson rolls his eyes at him and he shrugs.

“What is this place?” Skye asks.

“One of Fury’s secret bases.” An unfamiliar voice pipes up and a short man came running from around the corner just as he finishes fixing his tie. “I call it Providence, although technically it doesn’t have a name, because technically, it doesn’t exist; with it, being a secret base and all.”

“I thought Fury stopped having secret bases after the 80’s?” Clint asks.

Phil shrugs at him. “It’s Fury.” He says as if that explains everything and it actually kind of does.

“If everyone would follow me.” The man gestures for them to get closer and fixes his lanyard before he walked further into the compound. He leads them into the kitchen and gestures grandly. “Pretty cool, huh?” He smiles at all of them.

“I’m sorry, who are you exactly?” Phil finally asks.

“Erik Koenig. Agent of SHIELD” He says tiredly. “Level 6.” He shows Coulson his lanyard.

“Phil Coulson.” Phil says.

“I know!” Erik says with absolute glee. Kind of like Phil when he met Steve Rogers for the first time. “I know, It is an honor to meet you, Agent Coulson.” Erik shakes Phil’s hand even before Phil stretches it out.

“Looks like you two are gonna get along well, Phil. You can fanboy over comics and stuff.” Clint jokes and Erik gives him a glare for his troubles.

“I apologize..” he interrupts Clint. “for the kerfuffle outside. the precision remote system was designed to destroy any rapidly moving metallic object.” he explains.

Phil nods. “It was my badge.”

Erik’s eyes grew and he nods trying to comprehend. “It was your- Okay, that’s gonna be tough to replace but very soon you’re gonna be issued your very own lanyard.” He says like that’s supposed to cheer Phil up. Then he looks at the rest of the team then pointedly at Clint “Lanyard for others will be distributed on a case-by-case basis.” Clint looks around and then points at himself. Erik nods. Erik doesn’t like Clint very much then.

No one was impressed by Erik’s speech. Except for May who looked slightly amused. Then again, she does have a twisted sense of humor.

\---

_The mission had gone bad._

_Clint doesn’t remember much; only that he’d been shot. 5 times. He’s had worse, but this also counted as something bad, right?_

_Clint tried to open his eyes and everything was a blurry mess. He doesn’t like the feeling of not being able to control his eyesight._

_He could see that there were men in labcoats hurrying every which way. He could see that this wasn’t SHIELD. He raised his hands just enough and he could see the IV stuck to his arm, the blood on his chest. He raised his hand some more and touched his face. One of his eyes were bandaged. That doesn’t make sense though. He was never shot in the head, or anywhere near it. In fact, his head was injury free. Why was his head bandaged?_

_His eyes still gave him blurry images. Clint felt disoriented and out of sync, it must be the drugs. He tries to tug on the IV, but it was no use. He didn’t have the strength._

_Where the hell was he? This was definitely not SHIELD. He’s sure of at least that._

_Who the hell were these people?_

_What did they do to him?_

_A man enters the room, Clint recognizes the blonde hair and the old voice. It was… It was that guy. That guy Fury always hangs with. The only other level 10 at SHIELD. Why can’t he remember his name?_

_Clint hears him bark orders at the men in labcoats and they scurry to do as he asks. That’s wrong. This guy wasn’t like this in SHIELD. He’s supposed to be the yang when Fury was the yin. Or was it the yin when Fury was the Yang? It doesn’t matter, really. Now, he looked like he was in rage, yelling at everybody, pushing one of the guys in labcoats down and ordering them to move faster._

_This wasn’t the guy Fury stood beside. Then again, what would Clint know? He doesn’t even know the guy’s name. He doesn’t remember much actually._

_Before he could think more, he sees another guy in a labcoat approach him and inject something in his IV, Clint started to drift off._

_This was not good._

\---

“This is really, really bad.” Skye says as she types into her laptop. “Quinn is the least scary of the bunch and he shot me. twice.” Grant Ward had come back to them and had just reported exactly how the Fridge was overrun and how the prisoners in there were now free men.

“Quinn’s more of a sociopath. A lot of those inmates are full blown psychopaths. Violent, Impulsive.” Phil tells her.

“And some with superpowers.” Clint finishes for him.

“Lovely.” Skye comments.

“Is Marcus Daniels on the list?” Phil asks warily. May and Clint looks at him at the same time, but they say nothing. Skye types a few things and turns the laptop to Coulson, showing him the face of an old enemy. “That’s him.” Phil swallows. “Cross check the list of the inmates with crime databases. Recent activity. Got a feeling we’ll be seeing a slight uptake.”

“Okay, but that’ll take time and more computing power than my laptop. Agent Koenig will probably have some-”

Phil nods. “I’m sure he’ll lend a hand.” He assures her. “That plane you flew in on, still got fuel?” He asks Ward.

“Yeah. You need me to pilot?” He asks, wincing as he gets up.

“I can do that.” Clint volunteers. “Besides, you heard the pretty doctor lady. You have to rest.”

Phil nods, “I’ll take a splinter team, we’ll go after Mr. Daniels. I think I know where he’s headed.”

\---

Before Phil could take out a team though, they all had to go through Orientation. Orientation apparently means they had to be interviewed one at a time with the ultimate lie detector. Apparently, it was the lie detector because it was designed to take on even Natasha. Which just made Clint proud of his lying, cheating, apparently - she - really - was - that - good, best friend.

Clint went in first.

“We’re gonna start with some simple questions. Establish a base line. What’s your full name?”

“Clinton Francis Barton. But, please don’t call me that.”

“Eye Color?”

“Blue.”

“Have you ever been married?”

“No. Not unless you count mission-wise. Then in which case, plenty of times.”

“Please list your immediate family.”

“Parents are dead. There’s my brother. But I don’t know if he’s still alive. Never really checked.”

“What’s the difference between an egg and a rock?”

“One’s used for pranks. The other is used as a weapon.”

“Have you ever heard of Project INSIGHT?”

“No.”

Erik looks down at his screen and raises a brow. “Are you sure?”

“I’ve never heard of it, I’ve read about it.”

Erik narrows his eyes at him. “Where?”

“I snooped around and found different reports mentioning it. I don’t know what it is, in general. Just that I know the name.”

Erik seemed appeased.  “Have you ever had any contact with Alexander Pierce?”

“Aside from seeing him around while giving orders to other agents? No.”

“You wash up on a deserted island alone, sitting on the sand is a box. What’s in that box?”

“My recurve and my arrows.”

“SHIELD no longer exists. The organization is labeled a terrorist organization. So why are you here?”

“I have no where else to go.” He says a little bit of sadness in his voice, when Erik frowns at his screen again, Clint adds. “I mean, there’s Stark and the others, but it never really felt like home, you know? Besides, Phil’s here. I need to be next to him.”

Erik gives Clint a tight smile. “Congratulations Agent Barton, let’s go get you a lanyard.”

And just like that, Clint was a proud (not really) owner of a lanyard.

\---

“Hey.” Clint stops Phil just after his fight with Melinda. “You okay?”

“I’m fine.” Phil mutters.

“No you’re not. Talk to me.”

Phil looks at him straight in the eye and asks. “Have you ever lied to me?”

There was silence. Then, Clint smiles. “Yeah. Bunch of times. Usually it’s ‘Yes Phil, I went to Medical. No, Phil, I’m not just saying that.’ But you know…”

Phil rolls his eyes at Clint and shoves him a little, before he meets the archer’s eyes again. “Asshole.”

Clint grins at him, but it slowly turns into a frown. “Listen, I’ve been thinking…”

Phil stays silent. Clint’s not the most serious guy he knows and when he’s serious, Clint can be scary.

“Maybe I shouldn’t go with you guys after all. Maybe I should chase another baddie. You know, just for-”

“Clint, is this about Audrey?” Clint doesn’t answer, but that was answer enough for Phil. “You know there’s nothing going on between us now, right?” Phil frowned.

“Yeah, no. I know. I know. It’s just that-”

“Clint, I wouldn’t want you anywhere but beside me. It’s always been like that. Even when I was with Audrey. Audrey’s perfect-”

“Well, that’s reassuring.”

Phil smiles. “Let me finish.” Clint looks at him. “Audrey’s perfect but she’s not perfect for me. You are.”

Clint slips his hands to Phil’s waist and pulls him in, mashing their lips together. Phil’s hands finds their way to Clint’s hair as he responds just as enthusiastically. Clint moans into the kiss that make shivers run down his spine. When they broke apart, Clint smiles at him, puckered lips and dilated eyes, all so perfect. All of it for him.

Then Clint’s eyebrows furrow again. “Until when?”

Phil kisses him again, soft and reassuring. “Forever, if you’ll let me.”

Clint grins at him. “There’s nothing more I’d want.”

“So you’re coming with us?”

“I’ll pilot the plane ‘til Portland, then I’m going to hunt down some other dastardly villain. I’m sorry.”

Phil pulled away. “But I-”

“It’s not about you and Audrey, Phil. It’s about me. I’m not strong enough to be in the same room as you and her. You might not be together, and you might not have feelings for her anymore. But that doesn’t mean I’m not jealous. I can get pretty possessive, Phil. You know that.” Clint holds his hands and squeezes tight.

“Okay. You know how to reach us.”

\---

_Clint was 15 when Garrett found him._

_He’d just started to learn archery from Trickshot and then a guy who looked somewhere in his early 20’s comes out from nowhere and tells him that he’s good, but he could be better. Clint doesn’t answer. The guy just smiles at him._

_The next time Clint sees the guy, he was talking to Trickshot. They both look at him and Trickshot shakes his head. Then the next thing Clint knew, Trickshot was on the floor, dead. Then the man walks up to him. Clint just holds his bow tighter._

_“Clint Barton? My name is John Garrett, Trickshot is an old buddy o’ mine. Told me about a kid he was training. Said the kid had off the chart hand-eye coordination, ran away from home to follow his brother only to be left in the wild to fend for himself.” Garrett says to him. Clint doesn’t respond. “I must say, a young man your age, out here in this terrible world, well, let’s just say you caught my interest.”_

_“I’m here to make you a one time offer so listen up.” Garrett’s smile falls off of his face. “Your brother is gone, this circus is sham and your mentor? that lying, sick, thieving, son of a bitch is now dead.” Clint looks down at the ground “Now, you can spend the rest of your life in this shitty place trying to get by with that bow and arrow of yours. Or” Clint looks up at him. “You can let me get you out of here and teach you how to be a man. I work for a secret organization that’s always looking to recruit young men like you.”_

_“Why should I trust you?” Clint asks when he finds his voice._

_Garrett shakes his head. “You shouldn’t. Don’t trust anybody. ever. Especially me.”_

_Clint looks back down at the ground. “Let me be clear. Going with me will be the hardest thing you’ve ever done. But on the other hand, you’ll never have to be afraid again.” Clint’s grip on the bow tightened even more. “Say yes. It’ll be hard, but fun.”_

\---

Phil’s phone was ringing just as the plane lands back in the compound. He looks at the unknown number and lets it ring a few more times before he answers.

“Phil?” It was Clint. Phil sighs in relief as he heard the archer’s voice.

“Hey.” Phil smiles despite himself.

“Hi. So, How’d the Daniels go?”

“Just about as you’d expect it.”

“So, shitttily?” Clint asks, clearly amused.

“Yeah, pretty much. Good news is, he’s gone now. Permanently.” When Clint doesn’t answer, Phil decides to ask. “What about you? How’s your side of the fence?”

“Right now, I’m just tailing Ian Quinn. That guy has a lot of secret compounds the press would love to get a peek out of. He needs to beef up security though.”

Phil smiles. Then his smile was quickly replaced by a confused frown as they approached the empty hold. “Where’s our Bus?” Simmons asks.

“And our team?” Fitz continues.

“Phil? What’s going on?” Clint asks still on the phone with him.

“I’ll call you back.” Phil says before he hung up on Clint.

\---

The phone rings exactly three times before Clint answers. “Phil?”

“May is gone. Ward and Skye took the Bus.” Phil says without missing a beat.

“What? I think you need to repeat that ‘coz it sounded like you just said that May-”

“She left. She left without telling anyone where she’s going. Ward and Skye went off together.”

“Wait. Skye and Ward? I thought Fitz and Ward had a thing- no. nevermind. That’s not important. Did May leave because of-”

“I’m afraid so.”

“Phil, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have told her to walk away. I was mad, and I was mean.”

“Stop it. Anybody would get riled up in your situation.”

“Thanks.”

“So, Any idea where Skye and Ward headed off to?”

“‘Fraid not. All we have is video of them leaving hand in hand.”

“Anything else?”

“Best case scenario, Agent Koenig knows something we don’t. Took the team, kept us in the dark for our safety.”

“Worst case?”

“We’ve had a wolf in the herd the whole time.”

“Phil that’s ridiculous, I’ve met your team. They’re good people.”

“So was Garrett, until he wasn’t. Look, I-” Phil was cut off by Simmon’s scream and Phil hung up the phone to investigate.

\---

_“Clint Barton?” Phil asks the man lying on the ground with his hand trying to put pressure on the bullet wound in his abdomen. The man glares up at him._

_“Fuck you.” He spits out._

_“My name is Phil Coulson. I’m an agent of SHIELD.” He shows him his badge for a second and when the man doesn’t even look at it, Phil puts it back in his pocket. “We need you to come in.”_

_“What if I say no?” He hisses._

_“I’ll have to persuade you.”_

_Clint snorts at that “Sorry, You’re not really my type.” He quips._

_“You’re not mine either but here we are, under the moon and the stars. Granted, there’s no candlelit dinner for two, but I think we’ll manage.”_

_“You think you’re funny?”_

_Phil shakes his head a little in mock thought. “I know I’m funny. People just don’t get my jokes sometimes.”_

_Clint doesn’t laugh._

_“Mr. Barton, We can help you. SHIELD can help you.” Phil gets a glare for that one. “We’ve been watching you, and we know what you can do. We could use a man with your skills in the agency._

_“I’m fine on my own.” Phil looks down at the wound on his torso and so does Clint. “Oh, Fuck you. You shot me.”_

_Phil shrugs. “I needed to talk to you. You wouldn’t even look at me.”_

_“Can’t you get a hint? That means I’m not interested.”_

_“I’m sorry, I must have read it wrong then.” Phil says sarcastically, he shouldn’t be bantering like this but recruiting never actually came easy and Phil has found that trying to talk to someone before dragging them in works wonders in the long run. He just hopes that Clint Barton is worth it._

_“Wow. The ladies must love you for that, huh?” Clint jabs at him._

_“Like you wouldn’t believe.” Phil smirks._

_“Asshole.” Clint calls._

_“I think I haven’t made myself clear. We can get you what you want Mr. Barton. All you need is to tell us what you want.”_

_It takes Clint three tries but when he looks up at Phil that third time, he knows its the truth. “I want to help people.”_

\---

Saving Skye was no easy feat. But they managed to do it, and the good news was that Skye was back. Melinda appeared too, that night. But she’d shown Coulson the remaining secrets of his revival.

Phil didn’t think about anything. Not even about what he just saw. So consider him being startled at the phone ringing as an appropriate response.

“Clint, listen, Garrett’s alive.”

“Phil. So nice to hear your voice again.” It was Garrett.

“John.”

“I see you’ve figured out Ward’s true nature.”

“Where’s Barton?” Phil heard grunting from the other line. It sounded like someone getting punched in the gut.

“Oh he’s doing very well, thanks for asking.”

“What did you do to him?”

“Me? Nothing. Now, why would I touch Agent Barton when he’s done absolutely nothing against me or my plans” Phil could feel the smile on Garrett’s lips as he said these words.

“If you hurt him-”

“I’d love to chat Phil, but I really am a busy man. I just called to say hi. I’ll tell Barton you said hello.” Then there was the distinct sound of the phone being dropped then footsteps before the line went dead. Phil tried to dial the number again to no avail. The phone was destroyed.

He needed to find Garrett.

He needed to get Clint back.

\---

_Clint is in that room again. The one where he saw that other level 10 agent? He can’t remember the name._

_His left eye was bandaged again. Every time he’s here, his eye is bandaged, and his eyesight gets blurry. He’ll wake up again in his room later when they inject the thing in his IV. He doesn’t have the strength to fight._

_He hears a familiar voice. John Garrett’s voice. He’s talking to one of the guys in the labcoat and Clint tries to listen._

_“-stable but his memory has been wiped again. There was a complication when the sensors indicated that there was muscle tension in his upper arms which indicated hesitance. He’s trying to break free of the commands. Even with the threat that he dies if he disobeys, he still hesitates.”_

_“Can we fix it?” Garrett asks, looking over in his direction._

_“We can try, but the-”_

_“Let me rephrase that. Fix it.” He hisses at the guy._

_“I’m sorry Sir, but if the subject refuses to cooperate, there really is no other way but to use the Initiative program.”_

_“We don’t have anything against him. He has nothing left. Do you not get that?”_

_“I do, sir. But the subject’s will is an uncontrollable variable. If it wins out, there’s nothing stopping him but the kill switch.”_

_“Useless. All of you.” Garrett shakes his head as he gestures for the guy to leave. He does so._

_Garrett approaches him in the cot, and he smiles down at Clint. “You have nothing to live for. Why are you still resisting?” When Clint doesn’t answer him, he continues. “SHIELD has no use for you. You’re just another thug that they call whenever they need to. What makes them different from us? We use you the same way they do. Why can’t you cooperate with us?” Garrett’s phone rings and he looks at the ID before he answers._

_“Sir?” Garrett looks down at Clint “He’s here. Still refusing to cooperate. It’s getting harder and harder ever since the battle of-” He gets cut off and there’s a confused frown on his face but it soon grows into a leer. “That’s wonderful news. I’m sure he’d be very happy to hear that. Thank you, Sir.” He hangs up his phone and smiles at Clint._

_“I was wrong. You do have something to live for. Your handler? My good friend? He’s alive. We should be celebrating. I tell you what, you let us control you again and we’ll stay away from your Phil. Maybe we’ll even let you see him, if you play nice with the doctors down here. It won’t take much of your time.” Garrett’s face turns sour. “Don’t fight the commands and we’ll let Phil Coulson live.”_

_Clint nods._

_“Very Good.” Garrett pats him on the head and leaves._

\---

In the span of less than a week, everything had gone to hell. SHIELD was gone. Two people in his team are possibly dead. The truth behind his revival is revealed. Everything was against them right now but there was no way Phil is going to take it lying down.

Besides, it couldn’t possibly get worse, right?

"Check the perimeter." Garrett says to Deathlok. Without a seconds thought, Deathlok moved towards the entrance of the compound leaving Garrett open. Coulson took his chance and snuck up behind John.

"Hi John." Coulson greets, sending the man down with a swift punch when he turned to Phil.

Garrett recoils and sneers. “Hi Phil.” Before sending a punch way too strong to be normal Phil’s way and making him fly, effectively disarming and incapacitating him for a few seconds.

Blood trickling down his scraped forehead, Phil grunts. “Well, that’s new.” He begins to crawl the grates he landed on to reach for his gun.

But the gun was now in front of a set of shoes worn by a man Phil thought he would never see again. You know, being ‘dead’ and all. Then again, Phil was supposed to be, technically, dead. “Sir?” He asks dumbfounded to a very much alive Nicholas J. Fury standing in front of him.

"You don’t need to call me sir, Coulson. Look at me, I’m dressed like I live under a bridge." He shrugs like they had just met at the supermarket and not hiding behind some giant cylinders containing who knows what.

"What are you doing here?" He asks instead because asking Why are you still alive? would probably be rude.

"Well Simmons turned me on that old-timey tracker thing Fitz left on your Bus." Nick says as Garrett’s men continue to shoot at the cylindrical metal containers that were probably not easy to destroy if Garrett’s using them for something.

Nick turns his head at the sound of the gunshots without even a flinch. “I went through great lengths to make sure you didn’t die the first time.” He points out as he looks back at Coulson.

Phil, probably getting tired of the ground, slowly stands up while grunting, ignoring the ache in his everywhere. “Now’s probably not the best time, but I’d like to have a lengthy conversation with you about that.” He winces at the sounds of the gunshots getting nearer. “It might get loud.”

"And I owe you that. But right now, we owe Garrett a punch in the teeth. Wouldn’t you say?" Phil nods. "This." Nick pulls from nowhere, like seriously, where did he get that?, Phil’s gun. "Packs a pretty good punch."

Phil practically grabs the gun from Nick and fires it up. “I know what it does.” He says before going out into the open and Blasting each of Garrett’s ‘supersoldiers’. Garrett just leers at him, until Fury comes out and fires 12 bullets straight to Garrett’s chest.

They both waited for the man to still completely and hopefully bleed out, but Garrett just looks up at them like he was entertained. They both look at each other.

Oh Boy.

"Fury." Garrett says as he stood up, Deathlok finally returning to his side. "When was the last time saw a tag team wrestling match between four dead guys." He doesn’t really ask. Deathlok looks at him, unimpressed. Phil could sympathize.

"I only see one dead guy in here." Phil states.

"Oh." Garrett mock gasps. "The power is all on this side of the room, fellas." and turns to Deathlok. then, dramatically turns his gaze back to Phil. "Phil, I’m surprised you’re trying to stop me. Course, I don’t blame you Nick. You haven’t seen the big picture. The big bang. Timeless frozen ocean. But Phil here has. We share a bond. We’re blood brothers.” He was still smiling a bloody - literal blood - smile.

"You didn’t tell me he’d gone this crazy." Nick scowls

"He’s really stepped it up a notch." Phil comments

"You remember that speech you used to give us Nick? About how one man can accomplish anything once he realizes he can be something bigger?" Garrett asks instead. "Well, now, I am."

Nick stares for a few seconds then “A part.” he raises a hand to emphasize it. “A part of something bigger.”

Garrett cocks his head. “Is that how it went?”

"Not a great listener." Phil shrugs.

"If you tell me that this whole Hydra path thing you took is because you misheard my damn one man speech-"

"I am the key to the future of the universe. I’m the origin of all-"

"You got it? right?" Nick asks Phil.

"Totally." Phil answers and they both stare at Garrett. "Loud and clear."

Garrett abandons the speech and points to Deathlok and then points to Fury and Phil. Deathlok turns to them and raises his arm, showing off his new guns; laser guns, to be exact.

"Fury was teaching us something you didn’t want to hear, John. Coz you only think about yourself. That’s the difference between your side and our side. Why we’re always going to win."

"What lesson Phil? Please, enlighten me."

All of a sudden, Deathlok turns to Garrett and points the lasers at him. But before Deathlok could shoot, he dropped onto the floor, the familiar blue of the night night bullet tracing his veins.

All three men, looked baffled for a second, then Garrett grins. “Is this the lesson, Phil?” Phil furrows his brows. trying to understand where the bullet was from. “That as long as you have someone you intend to protect, you’ll win? You underestimate me, Phil. Of course, I know that lesson.” Phil swallows, hard and his eyes widen in surprise as he hears the familiar soft thud of boots touching the ground from a height, and a figure walks from the shadows and into the light toward Garrett’s side.

"Why do you think I use it to my advantage?" Garrett smirks at Phil and Fury as Clint Barton stands beside the man who once claimed to be the Clairvoyant.

"Clint." Phil says almost a whisper.

"Hurts, doesn’t it Phil?" Garrett asks. "To find out that the man you grew to respect" He looks at Clint then back to Phil. "and love was lying to you the whole time.” Garrett grins as Phil clenched his jaw. “You see, Phil, what I learned was that having someone to protect… Someone to care about is a weakness. By risking your own life to protect someone else rather than yourself is a weakness you don’t want your enemies to find. But riddle me this, Phil. What are you going to do knowing that the man you wanted to protect is the enemy?”

"Clint?" Phil asks a question he can’t even say.

"There’s no use, Phil. He follows me. He’s always followed me. The real reason he was with you was because I ordered him to. He does what I ask him. And why wouldn’t he, when I was the one who saved him. When you found him only when I wanted you to." Garrett shakes his head softly at Phil. "He was never yours. He never even loved you.”

Phil fires his gun at Garrett, sending the man toppling down and unto his stomach. Clint moves to shoot, but Fury beat him to it, hitting his thigh, and sending Clint momentarily to the floor. Fury quickly moved to Barton’s side, kicking the Clint’s bow away from him while pointing the gun at the archer’s head. “Cuff Garrett.” Nick tells Phil.

"No need. The gun was set to its highest setting. I don’t think he’ll be getting up soon. or any time at all." Phil says as he drops his arm, the barrel of the gun, still smoking, and Garrett lay there, looking too much like charcoal.

Phil took one look at the archer, still on his knees and looking at him defiantly, and Phil’s lips twitched down. He turned to Fury and nodded before walking away. He didn’t need to stay here.

Fury cuffed Clint’s arm to his back and forced the archer up, not even caring if the bullet wound was still bleeding. “Your attempt to turn on us failed, Barton. I won’t touch you, Barton. But you can bet everybody else will. They will invent new ways to make your life a living hell. You devoted your life to a deranged narcissist who never gave a damn about anyone instead of the man who made you his everything. and now he’s gone. They will get all the necessary Hydra intel they can from you, but the torture is going to be external, when Romanoff hears about this” the archer didn’t twitch at the mention of his friend. “But even more so, internal -  because I know, Clint. Garrett lied. You loved Phil. You still do” Clint tensed then. ”and now you have the rest of your life to think about this night, how you betrayed him, and how he walked away from you.”

\---

_Clint was on a rooftop of a building. He doesn’t know how he got there, he doesn’t remember. He remembers being in Natasha’s apartment and eating greasy pizza with her while they watch sappy rom-coms. He doesn’t remember leaving._

_But he’s on the rooftop now, and he can very clearly see a man walking on the sidewalk. When the man turns the corner, he sees it. He sees the words. They’re forming right in front of him in midair. Like an incoming transmission. He sees it and they make sense. He’s receiving commands._

_He doesn’t know where they come from, or who they’re from. He just knows that they give him orders and he has to follow or they’ll hurt Phil. His Phil._

`Eliminate Council Member Green.`

_Clint doesn’t waste another second. He draws his arrow and lets it fly. Within seconds, Mr. Green is dead. He followed his orders._

`End Transmission. Good night, Agent Barton.`

_Phil is safe._

_Until his next set of orders come in._

\---

Clint reels his head back, he spit the blood out that was threatening to drown his mouth. His vision was blurry and he could barely make out the gray octagonal pattern on the wall. His hands were tied to the chair behind his back and he was acutely aware that he was being interrogated.

"Since when were you a member of HYDRA?" A voice asks. Clint knows that voice. He knows this place. He was sure that voice belonged to a friend.

"Wh-Where am I?" Clint asks as he tried to clear his vision and shake out the haze in his head. He can see two women. One stood right in front of him, and the other was leaning against the wall.

The woman close to him looks at the woman leaning against the wall. She pushes herself off of the wall and walks toward him. “You’re on the bus, Barton.”

That voice, it sounded so familiar, it almost hurt not knowing whose voice it was. She said the bus. Like it was supposed to mean something to him. Clint closes his eyes and focused hard. He knows its supposed to mean something. He tries revisiting his memories, only to realize that these weren’t his.

_He sees his hand, drawing back the string of his bow and aim it one of the WSC members; the one who didn’t agree on project Insight._

_He hears himself saying affirmative on a kill order for a police officer who tried to do his job and was chasing a murder suspect._

_He sees the exact moment Phil’s heart broke when he stepped up next to John Garrett as the man declares that Clint never loved him._

_He hears Fury’s words in his ear. “You loved Phil, You still do.”_

Clint tries to shake away the false memories, and get his hands free. “Where am I, really?” he asks the two women.

"You’re on the bus, Clint." The woman closer to him says. Then Clint sees it, It’s still a haze but Clint can see it. The woman’s face was becoming clearer, not by much but enough to be recognizable.

"May?" He asks. The woman doesn’t reply. Instead she looks at the other woman and Clint did too. The red hair was unmistakable. "Tasha?"

The two women looked at each other and then back at Clint. “Where am I? What’s going on?” He asks them, ignoring the bloody state of his mouth.

—-

Coulson’s mouth slowly dried out as he watched Clint on the screen inside the control room on the bus. Barton was now playing the brainwashed victim.

He didn't like this. He doesn’t like any of it. Clint was now claiming innocence, if his panicked voice and questions were anything to go by.

Phil huffed out and walked out of the control room , Fury’s voice calling him out followed him out.

—-

There was a soft click, and the two women Clint believes to be Natasha and Melinda turns, they nod in unison and walk out the door. His vision was still blurry from the blood that stuck his eyes shut. The door doesn’t open again but Clint knew he wasn’t alone.

"Who’s there?" He asks.

"The surveillance is switched off. So are the mics. It’s just you and me." That voice. That was Phil’s voice.

"Phil? I- I don’t know what’s going on. What’s happening? I can’t see clearly. What happened, Phil? I- I’m scared. Natasha and May keep on asking me questions I can’t answer. Phil? Phil, why are they asking me about HYDRA? Phil, I-"

"Stop calling me that!" Phil snapped.

Silence rang through the room and Clint heard Phi- Coulson exhale.

"What are you playing at here, Barton?”

Clint shuddered at the use of his last name. The last time Coulson used that was… Clint doesn’t remember. Why can’t he remember anything?

Clint shook his head. “I told you, I don’t know what’s going on.”

Phil took a seat at the far corner of the room and sighed. “What’s going on is that HYDRA has been in SHIELD ranks all along. SHIELD is gone. You, Agent Barton, are one of them. If that answers your question of why you’re strapped to that chair. It answers-“

"Wait. You think I’m HYDRA?" Clint asked, disbelieving.

"The fact that you pulled a gun on SHIELD agents, killed a WSC member, and murdered an innocent civilian because it was annoying one of Garrett’s associates make me believe so, Yes."

"Coulson, I’m not HYDRA!"

"Then how would you explain your actions? Were you bored, Barton?"

"No! I don’t even remember anything in detail! Everything in my head is a blur right now, and you’re dropping the You’re-HYDRA bomb on me?"

Phil leaned back into the wall. “Who ordered the kill on the WSC member?” He asked instead.

"I don’t know!"

"Since when have you been in league with HYDRA?"

"I’m not! I swear, I’m not! Coulson, you have to believe me."

"What do you know about Project Insight?"

"Coulson, Please. I swear I don’t know anything! I swear! I wouldn’t join HYDRA. Not when it stood for what I was against my whole life!"

"Didn’t stop you from doing what you did before I found you." Phil pointed out.

"That was before! I’ve changed! You changed me! I thought you knew that!"

"I thought I did. But Garrett says-"

"Bullshit! You told me Garrett is HYDRA! Why would you believe anything he says?"

"Why should I believe you?! Anything you say right now, Barton, could be a lie. Anything you’ve done with me since we met could be a lie! You think this is easy for me? You think I’m enjoying this?” A bitter laugh escaped Phil. “The man I loved was behind the trigger. And the gun was pointing right at me. You think I can just forget about that?”

"Phil that wasn’t me! I wasn’t-"

"I’m sorry. I can’t."

Phil got off of his seat and walked out the door, leaving Clint in the hands of Melinda and Natasha.

—-

Phil watched the live video of Natasha and May interrogating Clint. They were both getting nowhere. Clint was just screaming Phil’s name, asking for him. Asking to talk to him. Asking to see him.

The video suddenly shut off and Phil turned to see Fury standing by. “This isn’t healthy, Cheese.”

"I know."

"Talk to him."

"I already did."

"And?"

"I think I hurt him, more than he hurt me."

"You’re not usually one to play the revenge game, Phil. What happened?"

Phil ducked his head and smiled bitterly at the floor. “I got betrayed.”

"He claims to have been brainwashed."

"Nobody can prove that."

"Nobody can prove it wasn’t either. All you have is his word."

"I know."

"The question is, Are you going to take it?"

"I don’t know."

Phil walked out of the control room and headed for the bar, taking with him a bottle of scotch and locking himself in his office.


End file.
